Slop Terminator

Review code changes and identify slops—low-quality artifacts left by AI agents during development.

Core Workflow

1. •Get the diff: Check for jj (.jj/ directory) first, fall back to git
   • •jj: jj diff --from "trunk()"
   • •git: git diff HEAD~1 or compare to trunk/main
2. •Analyze changed files: Read modified files and the diff
3. •Identify slops: Mark each issue found
4. •Report findings: List slops with file:line references

Slop Patterns to Detect

1. Contextual/Session Comments

Comments explaining why the agent made a change in this specific session:

• •"Added this function to fix the bug"
• •"Refactored to be more readable"
• •"Updated as requested"
• •"We need to..." (agentic language)
• •TODO/FIXME that reference conversation context
• •Organizational comments summarizing what code does

Keep only: Comments explaining WHY code exists for future maintainers when the reason is non-obvious.

2. Over-Abstraction

Functions split into tiny pieces with no clear purpose:

• •Private methods that are only called once
• •Functions that just call another function
• •"Helper" functions that don't share code or abstract complexity
• •Excessive indirection (A calls B calls C calls D for simple logic)

3. Under-Abstraction

• •Repeated code blocks that should be functions
• •Copy-pasted logic with minor variations
• •Large functions doing too many things

4. Dead/Inefficient Code

• •Unused imports, variables, or functions after refactoring
• •Code that no longer fits the new architecture
• •Obsolete workarounds that were forgotten
• •Imports added but never used

5. Unnecessary Defensive Checks

• •Try/catch blocks in trusted code paths
• •Redundant null checks in validated contexts
• •Exception handling that just re-throws
• •Checks that contradict the established contract

6. Style Inconsistencies

• •Different naming conventions within a file
• •Mixed quote styles, spacing, or formatting
• •Patterns that don't match surrounding code

7. Agentic Emoji/Symbol Usage

• •Unusual symbols a human wouldn't type
• •Decorative emoji in code or comments
• •Unicode symbols for basic operations (➕ instead of +)

Output Format

For each slop found, report:

• •File:Line: Location
• •Type: Category (comment/abstraction/dead-code/defensive/style/symbol)
• •Issue: What was found
• •Suggestion: How to fix (or "Remove")

Diff Commands

# jj (preferred if .jj/ exists)
jj diff --from "trunk()" --stat
cd <file-dir> && jj diff --from "trunk()" <file>

# git (fallback)
git diff HEAD~1 --name-only
git diff HEAD~1 <file>
git diff main --name-only
git diff main <file>

Example Analysis

FILE: src/utils.js:42
TYPE: comment
ISSUE: "Added this to handle the edge case from our discussion"
FIX: Remove - explains conversation context, not code purpose

FILE: src/api.js:15
TYPE: abstraction
ISSUE: Private method `processData()` just calls `transform()`
FIX: Inline `processData()` calls

FILE: src/handlers.js:8
TYPE: dead-code
ISSUE: Import `lodash` added but not used
FIX: Remove import